Here I am, five o'clock in the morning, waiting to board the plane and to start a new adventure. I am waiting in the almost abandoned airport of Amsterdam. While it is still dark and quite outside and my luggage is being loaded on board, I am already looking forward to fall asleep in the plane. By not sleeping this night I hopefully prepared myself for the six hour time difference in Beijing. I've never had such a long flight, nor such a big difference in time....

So this is it, T minus 15 hours and counting. Preparations are in full swing. Bags nearly packed, documents almost ready, passport photos are taken soon and my blog is close to having its first entry. It wasn't an easy choice, but after careful consideration (more or less) I have decided to go China for one school-year. For my studies at Saimaa University of Applied Sciences in Finland I have the possibility to go abroad for one year to obtain a double degree. M...